VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WVEC) — Parents whose children attended Emmanuel Lutheran School just want closure.
They were hoping the planned meeting with church council on Aug. 20 would give them that. It was scheduled to take place at 7 p.m., but on Saturday night, it was abruptly canceled.
Nisa Cochran’s daughter is one of more than 50 students who attended the school, and she was frustrated when she found out the meeting was canceled.
“I'm asking them for an apology. We deserve the right to sit in front of you and you need to give us that right we are parents of these children you decided to displace,” said Cochran.
Late Saturday evening, Church Council President Carol Wasko announced the meeting was canceled through a recorded message that went out as a mass phone call to parents.
The voiced message said:
“This is Carol Wasko. I wanted to let you know that we will not be meeting on Monday night as we originally planned. I will be in touch and then the next few days to reschedule. Also, the church will not be open on Tuesday and Wednesday as we indicated earlier.”
Next Tuesday and Wednesday were the days parents were originally told they could go to the school to pick up their children’s belongings. Now, Wasko told parents they’ll have to set up an appointment.
All of this is taking place with less than two weeks before children were supposed to start school at Emmanuel Lutheran. Another parent, Trisha Moahem, described trying to find a new school for her child on such short notice as stressful and emotional.
“I think it’s very suspicious and I think it’s kind of odd that they can’t even answer questions, but these questions are very simple,” said Moahem.
On Friday, Wasko called police, alleging teachers vandalized the school and stole materials after 10 of them were terminated.
But on Saturday night, Rachel Lizan, the Chair of the School Board, reached out to 13News Now stating Wasko lied.
In a statement, Lizan said:
"The school board authorized the school director to liquidate the school’s materials, equipment and supplies to other nonprofit schools in an attempt to make a difference in the community and the lives of our youngest learners."
Beyond finding out why the school abruptly closed, parents also want to know what is going to happen with the deposits and other fees they've already paid the school in advance for the upcoming school year.
Cochran said the school needs to give them some clarity.
“I'm not giving up. We are going to have our voice heard and the council will hear us,” said Cochran.
We tried calling Emmanuel Lutheran Church several times on Saturday, but were unable to get a hold of someone.